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attributes: He was
loyal, intelligent (although not well educated), hardworking,
gentle and loving, very good looking, and great with children. She
understood that not everyone shared her idealism about interracial
marriages, but she had completely fallen for him.
    For his part, Marcus definitely loved Elizabeth. He
was not envious of her family’s wealth. Gaining respect at the
Board of Trade was more important to him than anything was besides
his mother and the kids at the Boys Club. He felt the resistance of
those close to her and hoped that Elizabeth’s love for him might
rise above the family’s prejudices.
    By the next summer, Elizabeth announced to her
family that she became engaged to Marcus. She told her family that
she had achieved clarity about her future. No longer did it include
a law career, or any social-inspired work like the Peace Corps.
Instead, she was dedicated to this man with a radically different
background. She knew that her parents would have trouble accepting
her wishes, but she committed to her plans. Over the strident
objections of Elizabeth’s family (primarily her father and
brothers), Elizabeth and Marcus were married in a small, private
wedding. The modest wedding belied the big blowout parties expected
of a daughter of Jon’s social strata. He asked Marcus to stop
calling him Mr. Handelair - a nice gesture except that he told
Marcus to call him Jon, not Dad. Despite his misgivings about this
union, Jon Handelair outwardly embraced his new son-in-law and
privately promised Elizabeth to provide substantial financial
support beyond Marcus’ meager security guard pay. Jonathon set up a
sizeable monthly “allowance” which nearly tripled the Imari’s
household income, primarily so Elizabeth could maintain the
lifestyle to which she had become accustomed.
    ***
    One year later Marcus and Elizabeth welcomed Jamal
Jonathon Imari into the world. He was a beautiful baby with the
best mixture of European-Dutch and African-American features.
Elizabeth’s family loved this boy but they never overcame the
awkward way they felt about their daughter’s mixed-race marriage.
This birth of Jamal solidified the marriage between Elizabeth and
Marcus, and no Chicagoland parents could be more proud.
    After a few years, Jon Handelair won the election of
president of the Board of Trade. This prestigious position paid
well and propelled him into even higher social and political
circles. Not coincidentally, Marcus became the manager of the
Compliance and Security Department at the exchange. This was no
desk job. Although he no longer guarded the entrance to the trading
floor, he still carried a concealed firearm in his coat pocket in
case the exchange floor or members needed assistance. All threats,
and there were many, were taken seriously.
    ***
    Jamal was 13 years old when one of Elizabeth’s
brothers was getting married. Marcus was included in the plans for
an elaborate Las Vegas bachelor’s party. All of her brother’s Ivy
League friends were flying out, as well as cousins and a host of
Chicago friends. Jonathon was going as well. As Jonathon had done
so many times in the past, he subsidized Marcus by paying for his
travel package to ensure that Marcus could attend the party. Jon
Handelair’s family survival strategy regarding his black son-in-law
evolved to outward support, inward trepidation.
    Marcus arrived in their near west, suburban home
just in time to take a shower and leave for Las Vegas. Elizabeth
was excited that Marcus was included in the men’s weekend of fun.
She was going to hang out with Jamal for the weekend. Because
Marcus had little travel experience, Elizabeth checked his
overnight bag while he was getting ready in the bathroom. She
quickly decided that he had not sufficiently packed for the weekend
and replaced his clothes with her choices. Thinking about the cool
Las Vegas nights, she added his work jacket into the bag. Marcus
emerged from the bedroom and said his goodbyes to